This UC student’s love of criminal justice led her to study in Scotland

“I’m not exactly sure what I would do if I didn’t pursue criminal justice,” says Ramos. “That’s just always been something I’ve known I wanted to do.”

The third-year Criminal Justice major in the University of Cincinnati’s College of Education, Criminal Justice, Human Services, and Information Technology is right on track to fulfill her longtime aspirations, which, as of now, lead toward a legal career.

“When I graduate, I plan on going to law school, hopefully to be a criminal law attorney,” she explains. “I have a minor in Law and Paralegal Studies and a certificate in Social Sciences Research.” She adds that attending an R1 institution has given her a deep interest in research as well, and she’s staying open to opportunities in fields such as law enforcement. But criminal law is an obvious fit for both her inclinations and interests.

“I’ve always had a passion for advocating for other people,” she says. “Just speaking up on what I believe in.”

And though the pathway from New Jersey to Cincinnati could appear to invite speculation — is Ramos a Skyline Chili superfan or something? — fact is, she found her way to the Queen City easily. For criminal justice students, UC is a common destination.

“Ohio is a little bit of a ways away from me,” she laughs. “My school back home really pushed going to top universities around the country, and for me that was just a quick Google search: ‘best criminal justice schools in the nation.’ UC was one of the first ones that came up because of our amazing co-op program.” The self-described “city girl” (Ramos grew up adjacent to the City That Never Sleeps, after all) immediately connected with the urban environment of Clifton’s uptown campus.

“This, to me, is the perfect fit.”

“It was an absolutely incredible experience,” she says, referencing the relationships her group developed as they shared experiences such as tasting Scottish cuisine (“Not great — but the experience of trying it was awesome”), navigating European public transportation and enjoying the local nightlife in Glasgow and Edenborough. And field trips in the faculty-led experience, which included visiting a Scottish courthouse and touring a prison, provided students with a global understanding of their area of study. “We were able to see similarities and differences between the systems here and the systems over there, which is pretty cool,” she says. “It really tied into the whole criminal justice aspect of it.”